Positive Emphasis and You-Attitude: An Empirical Study

Abstract

We measured objective and subjective characteristics of 99 memoranda and derived indices of selected message characteristics (positive emphasis and youattitude) and message reinforcers (benefits and threats). Employed business practitioners reacted to the memoranda as though the messages had been received at work and reported perceived message tone, commitment to comply with the message, and reader satisfaction. We used regression analysis to test several relationships predicted from a stimulus-response model.The study (a) provides some of the first empirical support for the concepts of positive emphasis and you-attitude; (b) supports the stimulus-response model developed in the paper, suggesting that it might merit additional research; (c) raises questions about current academic conceptions of positive emphasis and you-attitude; and (d) suggests additional research questions concerning, for example, the virtues of brevity and the effects of message organization.

“Everybody Identitiefies with Smokey the Bear”

“…Like Cheney, we found frequent use of recognition tactics. Use of the assumed we has been confirmed in other genres of organizational writing (Shelby & Reinsch, 1995). One of the most striking similarities we found is the use of the assumed we strategy.…”

“Hej Seppo, Could You pls Comment on This!”—Internal Email Communication in Lingua Franca English in a Multinational Company

“…Hagge & Kostelnick 1989, Shelby & Reinsch 1995, Pilegaard 1997) and requesting in business messages in particular (e.g. Yli-Jokipii 1994, BargielaChiappini & Harris 1996, Sipilä 1997, Paarlahti 1998, Akar 1998.…”

Clinical Performance Expectations

“…The You-Attitude approach also emphasizes what the reader wants to know, rather than what the writer feels the reader should know, thus respecting the reader's current knowledge base. 15 By providing students with pragmatic baseline behavioral expectations for the beginning, middle, and end of their clinical rotation, student anxiety may be decreased and learning enhanced.…”